If I was to go out and buy a Cervelo or a Trek or a Quintana Roo or a Kestrel carbon fiber bike would I really notice the difference. They are all quality bikes, will all go as fast as I can power them and will last a long time, So why does it matter what brand we buy: it doesn’t . BUT the manufactures of a product will make you believe their product is better, faster, lighter than the next guys. I don’t think that it matters at all. Yes there might be subtle differences between them, but for the average/above average rider they won’t notice the difference. Do you think that Normann won Kona because he was on a Kuota, No …he would have won no matter what he was riding. We buy products because it’s cool, Lance rides it, CSC rides them, Normann won on the bike. Just like Cervelos sales after they were in the Tour I’m sure Kuota’s sales are more than double since Normann won.
Shhhhh. Orcaman- you’re blowing it…
Truth of the matter is, consumer do an impressive job using a wide range of media previously unavailable to make intelligent choices froma wide range of advanced technologies not even availabel to elite athletes as recently as 2 years ago.
Then they buy the coolest looking one they can get the fastest.
thats not true, my P3 is faster than yours.
Christian Brother’s (whiskey) did a cool study a long time ago. They were losing their dominant market share to K & J Whiskey, another low-end offering. So they first held a blind taste test. Subjects average preference was about equal (half chose CB, half chose K & J).
Next, they did a taste test but they told the subjects which one was Christian Brother’s and which one was K & J. Subjects average preference was about equal (half chose CB, half chose K & J).
Next they did a taste test but they put the whiskey bottle behind the corresponding whiskey they were to drink. Suddenly, far more people chose K & J as tasting the best.
Next, they did the same test but they switched the sample (put the CB sample in front of the K & J bottle, and vise-versa). Again, K & J (which was actually the CB sample) won the TASTE TEST by a huge margin.
Moral of the story? Our perception of quality (or whatever other benefit we care about) is hugely affected by appearance. The pretty colors and exotic names printed on the bottle (or top tube) probably hold more sway than anything else about a product.
Sure, marketing is important. So does building bikes that don’t suck. Some people value one more than the other. My perception of triathletes is they (we) are driven somewhat less by flash and more by substance. We (they) tend to look for improvements to justify a choice.
Cervelo is a good example. As far as marketing goes, I don’t think they are all that great … lousy ads, boring paint/graphics. But, they make much better than average bikes.
But, to answer your first question? Yes, you would notice a difference; or I would, and did. They are distinctly different bikes.
Marketing in this little tri universe is unsophisticated and simple compared to the real world … you know, elections, Nike ads, the NFL. Nothing wrong with marketing, it’s a language that is pretty simple to translate if you pay attention.
I ride a Merckx because it is quantifiably the bestest/fastestest frame in the whole whide world. Has nothing to do with the name (EDDY!) on the downtube. And toptube. And headtube. And seattube. And seatstays. Etc.
Sometimes you get a buyer like me. Someone that’s trying to hold on to doing something they like, which is to ride a bike. Unfortunately, I have a very difficult time being able to stay on a bike as long as I’d like, because of back injuries. I am very thankful that beam bikes are made, and they certainly work for me. If I went with the advertising and branding, I’d have bought a Softride. But, I went with elegant simplicity, and what I perceive as a much more durable design, in the Titan Flex.
All that said, the Yaqui Carbo I used to pilot wasn’t like any other triathlon bike I’ve ever had the pleasure to mount. That animal is different. Better different. I have never been on a Cervelo P3…that could be better, I don’t know.
One thing I did notice lately, when all the pictures of bikes are lumped together on one page of print as an ad for a bike shop…there sure are a lot of similar looking bikes. You have the formed sleek carbon aero ones, the cut-out seat tube of various iterations, the deeper rims. I think the level of actual aerodynamic functionality of the bike designs is showing up in repeated design cues…even if they are a little different. Even Softride is taking a cue from Titan Flex, it looks like Softride is now putting a little post under their saddle…that lowers the beam, which is a good thing. It’s not nearly as low as the Titan Flex, but, it’s an example of an improvement perhaps as a result of a competitor’s superior design.
Cars are better today as a result of competition. Bikes, hopefully, are better today for the same reason.
I want to blindly follow Gerard too.
Please?
-sour milk boy.
I am part of the Cervelo Cult …I have 2 P3’s …and will probably have a P3 Carbon sooner than later. I think the P3 is an amazing bike! I just think that I would think the same if I owned a Kestrel, QR, Trek etc (as long as it was a bike around the same price point with the same components)
I agree. I think marketing is about 80% of the sale. I just got into a pissing match for saying something against Zipp wheels on another thread (Reynolds vs. Zipp), but having ridden both now, I would say they are remarkably similar and have actually decided to go with the reynolds.
If I was to go out and buy a Cervelo or a Trek or a Quintana Roo or a Kestrel carbon fiber bike would I really notice the difference?
The same could be asked for golf clubs and tennis rackets and washing machines and even cars. Some buy on advertising, some on branding, true, but some on the marginal difference, real or perceived, of that particular product. The discerning consumer needs to determine if there are real marginal differences between products, how they benefit him or her, and purchase accordingly. That’s just intelligent consumption.
Is this any different from other consumer products?